Ninety two years of being on this earth -- and she has finessed the art of doing things by hand.

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Because she does not have a dishwasher I must wash/dry & put away her dishes by hand. .
But you know what? there is something almost soothing about that whole thing....it reminds me of my sisters & me standing at a sink full of dishes, giggling about some of the most dorky things ever as we rushed to get them all done.

And so now -- much to our kids' chagrin -- they are learning to do the dishes by hand (even tho our dishwasher is less than 10 inches away, ready to be loaded). They are now standing next to a sink full of sudsy water, learning to do things by hand, wondering if their parents have completely lost it & loving every moment of it.c

So what better birthday gift than to crochet Ruth some dishcloths?

I added crochet edging to hand towels that I bought from the store; used Lily Sugar 'n Cream ; my g or h crochet hook;

1. How to stand still with hands in sudsy water and just enjoying the quietness of scrubbing some glassware & silverware.

2. How to fold a fitted bed sheet. Perfectly. (Can you all do this? Sheesh, this skill seemed to escape me entirely! But now?! Thanks to Ruth --I show off how I can do this -- and yes, it is always met with complete eye-rolling.)

3. How to make the fiercest bowl of home-made frosting. (And I'm not talking about powdered sugar with a little milk added in. Ruth gave me her grandmother's recipe from the old country that is made on the stove with flour, milk, butter, shortening and sugar...more than yummy! Bye, bye store bought frosting in a plastic tub!)

22 comments:

What a lovely post. Some of the best conversations I've ever had has been while sharing a big sink of dishes with someone. Your dishcloths are very cute and I'm sure Ruth will love them. Now I think I shall pull out some Sugar 'n Cream and make some, too.

And just what is the trick to folding fitted bedsheets? I've yet to manage this! :)

Everything is lovely esp the edgings! I did plan on making some but still don't have the time. About the fitted sheet folding, I saw the trick that Martha Stewart did on Oprah and followed it for awhile but I always got frustrated that I just folded and stuffed everything into a square/rectangle! LOL!

Lovely! And I thought I recognized those stitch patterns. :) I live in my grandmother's house, and do everything by hand (no dishwasher, no clothes dryer). There is something I LOVE about hanging the clothes out on the line....but the dishes, well, that part I could skip.

Isn't it amazing that doing things by hand can make one feel ....good, somehow...a sink full of sudsy water can be "think" time...your kids will get it one day...when they don't have a dishwasher or mum 10 inches away...I'm sure Ruth will love those hand made cloths so much more than those nasty throw away ones and they are lovely...as are you for making them and she for teaching you the art of handmade....and folding sheets...I learned that way many years ago and my mother was blown away...we didn't have fitted sheets in England...so I didn't get rolled eyes...well, not the first time anyway!!!! :)great post this!!!

Hola from Spain!I do understand how you feel. I'm taking care of my parents (Dad 77 with Parkinson's and Mom 89 with Dementia) Sometimes it is very hard to cope with everything but many times it is a fulfilling experience. Many things are done by hand here and crochet is an art I started doing two years ago. I needed to do something creative. It's an excelent stressbuster. Lovely blog.Sending you lots of love and strength.Anaxoxoxox

What a beautiful post. You are surely being blessed by Ruth who has much of life's lessons to offer up and your children will thank you for sharing those lessons with them. I have fond memories of washing dishes at my Mammaw's sink when we gathered for family holidays. The crocheted dishcloths and kitchen towels are a perfect gift for such a lovely woman. It truly is the simple things in this life that matter. Best wishes, Tammy

love you blog!!Yes ,we miss out on some of the most precious moments in time by doing so much in a hurry and not allowing our time of "meditations" happen when doing the "dishes by hand" handwork, etc.It helps sooo much in stress relief. And YES you doo need to share with us your frosting recipe!!Please!!!:)

having a lovely morning bouncing around your blog using those little pics at the end of each one. Just had to comment on this one. It is so easy to overlook the little pleasures in life, and doing things by hand does seem to make us look a little closer!

I just found your blog today and am so thrilled to be catching up on your posts. This is a lovely post and your projects are magnificent! I, too, enjoy savoring the time to do things the simple way, as in hand washing the dishes. Wonderful times.